I've mentioned Chris Barber on the blog several times, but I don't think I ever discussed the significance. He formed the "Chris Barber Band" in 1954, at the age of 24. They played "New Orleans Jazz" and their first record had a hit with "Rock Island Line" (https://youtu.be/CublT5vFS2o) that made Lonnie Donnegan famous. (Lonnie went on to popularise "skiffle" music which inspired a generation of Brits to pick up guitars, including Paul Mccartney and John Lennon.)
In 1959, Chris Barber had another hit with "Petite Fleur" (https://youtu.be/dRFjEko04U0) which went to #3 in the UK and #5 in the US. After that, the band started touring in the US. The musical circuit at the time included a stop in Hartford, Connecticut, where my Uncle George lived. He loved their sound (and was a bit infatuated with their lead singer - and Chris Barber's wife - Ottilie Patterson) and even had the band back to his house one night.
Jump ahead almost 50 years and I had just moved to the UK and my uncle was telling me about Chris Barber. I googled him and discovered that, not only was he still performing, but he was playing in London that week! I bought a ticket and fell in love with their sound just as much as my uncle had. Afterwards, I met Chris Barber and told him the story. I think he was happy to have someone under 70 in the audience.
After that, I saw him whenever he was in London. He was almost 80 when I met him and still maintained a grueling touring schedule, playing a lot in Germany and Asia, as well as the UK. I last saw him in 2013, before I moved to New Zealand.
I haven't thought about him in ages but I googled him this morning to discover he'd passed away four days ago, at the age of 90. Wikipedia said he retired in 2019 and that he was suffering from dementia. He'd been given an OBE in 1991 and published his autobiography ("Jazz Me Blues") in 2014.
As an aside, Pat Halcox played trumpet for the Chris Barber Band since it formed in 1954 until he retired in 2008, a partnership that lasted 54 years. The first time I saw Chris Barber I got to see Pat play, and the last time I saw Chris Barber he told the audience Pat had passed away.
Chris Barber was a legend, and a wonderful link to my uncle who passed away in 2012. I feel privileged I got to hear him play, and lucky to have a number of his CDs in my collection. (I think one of them might be signed.)
You can read more about Chris Barber here:
You can buy his CDs at https://www.chrisbarber.net and (should the pandemic ever end) the Chris Barber Band continues to play and tour.
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